Footwear



Jan. 9, 1945. H. BLOTNER 2,367,092

' FOOTWEAR` I Y Filed March 3, 1945 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 9, 1945 UNITED l STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,357,092 Foo'rwEAa HarryIBlotner, Chelsea, Mass. Application March v43, 1943, Serial No. 477,835

v fol. ses-11.5)

'3 Claims.

This invention relates to the manufacture oi' footwear, and its principal objects are toprovide a shoe of the sandal type which is of simple design and of pleasing appearance, which embodies Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the sandal shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the sandal showing the forepart of the outsole removed;

Fig. 4 is a section on ,the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a perspectiveview showing another form of sandal constructed in accordance with the present invention; y

Fig. is a view similar to-,Fig. 5but illustrating a different manner of lacing about the foot;

Fig; 7 is a top plan view of the sandal shown in Fig. 5; and

Fig. 8 is a bottom plan view of the insole.

In accordance with'the present invention l provide a sandal or the like article of footwear comprising insole and outsole members which may be of leather or other similar material having the required degree of weight, strength, exibility, etc., the insole member being provided with spaced perforations along 4its peripheral margins, which perforations are preferably arranged in pairs, and each pair of perforations lll) may be connected by a groove extending along the concealed surface of one of the members, preferably the under surface of` the insole. A length of strand material, such as a single length of rawhide or the like strong and exible strip materialis interlaced through the perforations so as to provide exposed loops through which the free end portions ofthe strand may be laced when the sandal is applied to the wearers foot.

In the embodiment shown in Figs. -1 to 4 an outsole I and an insole 2 are cemented together as indicated at 3, and a heel or the like tread 4 is attached to the rear of the outsole, The insole is provided along its inner and outer peripheral margins of its forepart with a pair of spaced perforations 5, 6 and 1, 8 (Fig. 3) and perforations I 0 and I I at the inner and outer margins of its shank portion. The perforations 5, yB and I, 8 are connected by longitudinally extending grooves I5 and I6, respectively, and the p erforations I0 and II are connected by a transversely extending groove I8, as shown in Fig. 3. A single lengthl of strand material 20 is interlaced through the perforations so that its intermediate portion extends along the groove I8, then upwardly through perforations I0 and II, along the exposed surface of the insole, then downwardly through perforations '6 and 8 to provide loops 2| and 22, then along grooves I5 and I6 and ilnally upwardly through perforations 5 and 'l to provide free ends which may be strapped about the wearers foot, laced through loops 2| and 22, crossed beneath the instep, and finally strapped in a figure of eight loop and tied about the wearers ankle, as illustrated in Fig. l.

The embodiment shown in Figs. 5 to 8 is generally similar to that shown in Figs. 1 to 4, and comprises an outsole 3| secured to an insole 32 byva line of stitching 33 (Fig. 7) and a heel piece 34 is secured in any suitable manner to the outsole. is formed with a plurality of pairs of perforations 35, 36 which extend along its entire marginal portions, each pair being connected by a longitudinally extending groove 31 formed in the7 under surface of the insole, as in the previouslydescribed embodiment. A single length of strand material 45 is interlaced through the perforations, extending along each ofthe grooves 3l and upwardly through one of the perforations of each pair and then downwardly through the other perforation, thereby to provide a plurality loi loops 40. The free end portion of the strand may then be strapped about the foot and laced through the loops 40, as illustrated in Fig. 5: but if desired the intermediate portion of the strand at the heel area may be extended upwardly to provide an elongate loop 4I, which may serve as an anchoring member when the ends are laced as illustrated in Fig, 6.

It will be noted that in each of the embodiments herein shown, the sandal consists essentially of three elements, viz., the insole,v outsole and lacing strand. although it is to be understood that if desired other elements and various forms of embellishment may be employed. An advantageous feature of the invention resides in the use of a single length of strand material which may be readily adjusted to fit comfortably about the wearers foot, and if desired may be easily replaced and another strand substituted, it being noted that the construction and arrangement of the grooved portions are such as to permit the replacement of the lacing strand by the use of a conventional lacing needle.

In this embodiment the insole 32 While I have shown and described different desirable embodiments of the invention it is to be understood that this disclosure is for the purpose of illustration and that various changes and shape in proportion and arrangement of parts, as well as the substitution of equivalent elements, may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as sei*l forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

l. A sandal or the like article of footwear consisting` essentially of insole and outsole members secured together, said insole having a pair of spaced perforations at the inner and outer margins of its forepart and perforations at the inner and outer margins of its shank portion, and a single length of strand material having its intermediate portion extending transversely along the under surface of said insole and passing upwardly through the perforations at said shank portion, along the outer surface of the forepart, through the adjacent perforations of said pair to provide exposed loops projecting upwardly from said insole member, then along the under surface of the'insole and upwardly through the other perforations of said pair to provide free ends which may be laced through said loops and about the wearers foot, said strand material being completely removable and its interlaced portions constituting the sole means by which the strand is secured to the insole member and providing the only means through which the free end portions of the strand may be laced so as to secure the sandal to the wearers foot.

y 2. A sandal or the like article of footwear consisting essentially of insole and outsole members secured together, said insole having a pair of spaced perforations at the inner and outer margins of its forepart, each pair being connected by a longitudinally extending groove formed in the under surface of said insole and perforations at the inner and outer margins of its shank portion connected by a transversely extending groove formed in the under surface of said insole, and a single length of strand material-having its inter-A mediate portion extending alongsaid transversely extending groove and passing upwardly through the perforations at said shank portion, along the outer surface of the forepart, through the adiacent perforations of said pair to provide exposed loops, then along the longitudinally extending grooves at the under surface of the insole and upwardly through the other perforations of said pair to provide free ends which maybe laced through saidvloops and about the wearers foot, said strand material being completely removable and its interlaced portions constituting the sole means by which the strand is secured to the insole member and providing the only means through which the free end portions of the strand may be laced so as to secure the sandal to the wearers foot.

3. A sandal or the like article of footwear consisting essentially of insole and outsole members secured together, the insole having a plurality of spaced perforations extending along its marginal portions, said perforations being arranged in pairs and each pair being connected by a groove formed in the under surface of the insole, and a single length of strand material having its central portion interlaced through said perforations with concealed parts extending along said grooves and exposed parts extending along the outer surface of said insole to provide small loops projecting upwardly from the outer surface of said inthe only means through which the outer end portions may be laced so as to secure the sandal to the wearers foot.

HARRY BLOTNER. 

